Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Jan 1st, 2019 Just Don’t Do It

Today’s Passage – Genesis 1 – 3 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Matthew 1 – 2; Proverbs 1; Psalms 1 – 5)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Deuteronomy 32:4

Read the “0101 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read previous posts from today’s reading – “In the Beginning”; “He Is Still Creating Me“; and “Let There Be Light”

“Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” (Genesis 3:1)

“My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.” (Proverbs 1:10)

Every time I read the third chapter of Genesis, I find myself screaming in my mind to Eve and Adam, “Don’t Do It!!!” Yet, when I am faced with the temptation to sin, I find that I am often not very different from this first couple – I give in to sin. Of course, sinners today such as myself are at a little more of a disadvantage than Adam and Eve as we were born with a willful, fleshly nature that desires to do whatever it pleases, even it is wrong. The Apostle Paul said:

“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.” (Romans 7:18)

Adam and Eve did not have that problem. Eve was deceived by the serpent into believing that God was wrong about eating of the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. She was convinced that she was going to gain something by disobeying the clear command of God. However, she added only evil to her life. Before eating the fruit, she knew nothing but good. Now, she and her husband became intimately acquainted with evil. The fruit of disobedience is always evil. Adam, however, was not deceived (1 Timothy 2:14). He was well aware of what he was doing, and I believe he understood, at least partially, the consequences of his action. It is my opinion that Adam chose to join his wife in the sin, desiring to follow her will instead of the will of God.

As we enter into this new year, let’s decide to be obedient to the will and Word of God. We are all sinners by nature, but we can still choose not to sin. We have all made many bad choices in the past, but we can also strive to make better decisions in the future. Sin of any kind will cause nothing but problems for us and the people we love. Let’s decide now that when sinners entice us that we won’t consent. By the way, the sinner that entices me the most is me – my flesh.

What can we do to help us to be more obedient to the Lord this year:

1. Spend time every day in the Word of God.

“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” (Psalm 119:11)

Make it a habit to read the Word, study the Word, and memorize the Word this year. The old saying still applies today: “This Book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this Book”. Read the Bible through at least once this year and begin the practice of daily memorizing verses of  Scripture; particularly the verses that will help you in areas of temptation. There are all kinds of websites and apps that will help you follow a plan.

2. Submit to the Spirit of God every day.

“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” (Galatians 5:16)

To “walk in the Spirit” means to live under the Spirit’s control. Before salvation, we really didn’t have a choice, but now we can choose not to sin, and choose to allow God to control our lives. Pray specifically for help from the Spirit to resist temptation.

3. Surround yourself in an environment that supports you to do right.

Run with people who also want to yield to God, and lovingly separate from those who do not. Fill your home with godly music and Scriptural reminders of the will of God for your life. Go to church as often as you can, and find a ministry to serve in. Become a soulwinner, or a more committed witness, helping others with their sin problem as well.

Adam and Eve made their choice and there is nothing that we can do about it. We have all made our sinful choices in the past as well. But, in this new year and in all future new years, we can choose by the grace of God to do right. When it comes to sin – Just Don’t Do It!